Oscars 2017: Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal speaks out against Donald Trump's border wall

'As a Mexican, as a migrant worker, as a human being, I'm against any form of wall that separates us'

(Reuters)

Though this year's Academy Awards may have been largely - and predictably - political in flavour, Donald Trump's name and direct policies haven't been name-checked as much as might be expected.

However, when it was Gael Garcia Bernal's turn to take the stage, presenting the award for Best Animated Feature Film alongside Hailee Steinfeld, the Mexican actor and renowned political activist utilised his opportunity to speak out.

"As a Mexican, as a Latin-American, as a migrant worker, as a human being, I'm against any form of wall that separates us," he stated.

Bernal has repeatedly spoken out against Trump's plan for a border wall between the US and Mexico in the past, having starred in the 2015 film Desierto, playing a Mexican immigrant worker attempting to cross the borderline while hunted down by a merciless vigilante (Jeffrey Dean Morgan).

The evening also saw a touching political statement from Best Foreign Language Film winner Asghar Farhadi, who decided not to attend the Academy Awards in protest of Donald Trump's 'Muslim' ban.

To catch up on all the happenings at this year’s Oscars ceremony, including that already infamous La La Land/Moonlight Best Picture mix-up (spoiler: Moonlight were the actual winners) check out our live blog and full list of winners.